Echoes

Prologue.

Avery Jude Winters ~ England 1765.

Today was like any other day, I awoke with the dawn just as the rest of my family; my parents and two sisters, and went about my morning duties of feeding the horses and cleaning the tack.

Once the appetites of my equine charges had been sated and the leather saddles and brass fixings were polished to a shine so high one could almost catch their reflection in it, I settled myself in one of the stalls along with my favourite mare to break my fast. Sometimes it proved advantageous to be the son of the cook, and today was one of those days. Two thick wedges of bread, butter freshly churned and a small slice of meat pie. I ate with gusto, ruminating on the good fortune my life held. My parents were both kind and honest people with good standing in the household; head groundskeeper and cook were good, solid positions and my two sisters - Ruth and Martha acted as ladies maids and companions to the Lord's daughters; Georgiana and Charlotte. Our Lord and master was a kind and generous man, who treated his servants with respect and paid us fairly. He and his wife, the late Lady Catherine, had ensured that all of the servants were educated and had allowed my sisters and myself to attend lessons with the young Ladies. 

I pulled an apple out of my pocket and rubbed it on my waistcoat, shining it, briefly before taking a hearty bite, relishing the tart flavour that hit my mouth. I chewed slowly, savouring the treat my father had given me as he left to tend the rose garden that had been so beloved by Lady Catherine. A small rustling noise pulled my attention to the corner of the stall opposite me and I watched as a rat scuttled around in the hay before running towards the mare standing next to me. My curiosity turned to horror in the blink of an eye as I watched the rat bite down on the back leg of the mare. I heard the mare's sharp whinny of pain and surprise and everything seemed to slow down as the mare kicked out her back legs. I felt a hoof hit me under my jaw then everything went black.

When I awoke I was standing in a forest clearing, staring into a well at my slightly distorted reflection. I saw movement in the corner of my eye and turned to see two men and a woman standing before me with benevolent expressions on their faces. All three were dressed very strangely; one of the men wearing some kind of horned headdress adorned with leaves and berries, his face was heavily bearded and he wore metal rings at his throat and wrists, the woman wore  an elaborate golden crown, a rope made of white flowers around her neck and delicate yet ornate clothing that swirled around her as she moved. The other man was dressed only in a simple white loin cloth and had wings protruding from his shoulder blades. They approached as one, but halted a few steps in front of me.

"Greetings Avery Jude Winters." The woman spoke in a low musical voice that served as a balm for my nerves. The robed man spoke next; "You are here to choose Avery Jude Winters." He too spoke calmly. The winged man stepped forward, the very tips of his wings brushing the ground as he moved, his was the face of a young man, he looked to be the same age as my youngest sister but for his eyes. His eyes held the wisdom of someone much older.

"Avery Jude Winters you must choose." He repeated the other man's words and I looked at them all in confusion.

"What must I choose? Where am I? Who are you?" I asked, clenching my fists by my sides as I tried to move away from them. The winged man held his hands out in a soothing gesture I recognised as one I used with the horses. 

"You are in the Between and I am Thanatos," he gestured to the other man "He is Cernonnus or the Horned God and she is Aditi. Avery Jude Winters you must choose. You have died before your time, before you completed all that the world had planned for you. You must choose to cross into the After with me or to go back and become an Echo and search for your Resonant." The man, Thanatos stepped back in between the two others. 

"Do I have time to decide?" I asked warily. The woman, Aditi shook her head sadly.

"You must choose." Thanatos and Cernonnus nodded and echoed her words. 

"The time has come Avery Jude Winters. You must choose. You must choose wisely and you must choose now." Her tone became more urgent and I looked up in shock and utter bewilderment as she seemed to form two extra sets of arms.

"Your time is up Avery Jude Winters! Make your decision. Choose. Choose now!" Her final words crackled with power and I cowered away from her in fear.

"I wish to return and search for my Resonant." I spoke clearly, and straightened my spine preparing for what would come next.

There was a blinding flash of light, a cacophony of sounds before everything went black once more.